Machine for cleaning dust mops and dust cloths



MACHINE FOR cLEANlNG DUST MoPs AND DUST GLoTHs'A .Filed Dec. l5, 1944 3 'Sheets-Sheet l Cla fence Effie/0.96662 Jan. 6, 1948. c. TURNEPSEED MCHINE FOR CLEANING xDUST MOPS AND-DUST CLOTHS 'Filed Deo. 15, 1944 5 sheets-sheet 2 u 11 11u11 1 l Clarence Tuzfzeseea Jan. 6, 1948. Vc. TURNl-:PSEED l 2,434,022

MACHINE FOR CLEANING DUST MOPS AND DUST CLOTHS Filed Dec. l5, y1944 v 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 C 7a rence Turrese ed I Patented Jan. 6, 19A48 MACHINE FOR CLEANING DUST MOPS AND DUST CLOTHS Clarence Turnepseed, Springfield, Ohio ApplicationDecember 15, 1944, SerialNo. 568,304

The object of the present invention is to provide a simple and economical machine by means of whichdust Vm'o'ps and dustcloths may be quickly shaken free of accumulated .dust and dirt.

, The Vmachine comprises means forcollectingv the' released dirt and discharging it into a dustreceivin'g bag. An efficient machine of this character willbe found highly useful in homes, apartment buildings, hospitals, voiiice buildings, factory oiiices, and, in fact, wherever 'dusti mops and dust cloths are used. By the use of this machine `the objectionable practice kof vshaking dust mops and cloths `out oiy open windows or the necessity of taking them'out-of-'doors is eliminated.

Briefly stated', the invention contemplates the provision ofra slide. adapted to be permanently 'aixed to a mop handle. The machine comprises a channeled; oscillatory diskI into which said slide may-be slipped,'togetherwith meansl for rapidly oscillating said disk. inv an arcuatev path. The

fact that the `disk is disposed atV anV angle andY the factY that the center of the mop handle is disposed oif-center with respect to theftr center of rotation of thefdisk results'in the mop'and mop handle being given two kinds of movement, one

a movement rapidly'upand downandfthe other,

a movement back and." forth in ari-arcuatepath w-iththe result that `the mop Vis agitatedso vigorously and in-such fashion that the 'accumulated dust and dirt is quickly shaken free,.xdrawn off by a: fan and discharged intoa dust bag Aof the character of those commonly employedinvacu'- um cleaners. In addition, the oscillatory disk or agitator-has a clamp-carrying 'arm'rigidlyaix'ed thereto, said clamp'being adapted 'to clamp a dustv clothto vigorously shake-the latter-ina manner hereinafter described.

Further objects and advantages: of the vinvention will be set forth in the detailedfdescription which follows: e

In the accompanying drawings: Y

Fig. 1 is a. planview ofamachine constructed in accordance. with the invention, with parts broken away;

Fig. 2 is a `plan view ofthe mop handle carried slidelhereinafter described;v

Fig. 3 is a rear elevation of said. slide;

Fig. 4 is a `detail view of alockingpin, and

Fig.. 5 is a 'vertical1 sectional View upon line 5 5 of Fig. I'.

Fig. 6. is a plan view of a modied form of agitator;

Fig. 7' isa, view partly in transverse section and partly in rearA elevation ofthe. structure of. Fig..

6, and.

isolaims. (o1. V15,-94)

. which I have chosen for purposes of illustration comprises a, preferably,

sheet metal cylindrical casing 5. I preferably, cover the Ymajor portion of the receptacle 5 with a screen comprising a frame 6, that is hinged at I to a flxedplate 8, vand carries the wire mesh 9. Spanning the case 5 ata lower level than the screen, vis Va bearing comprising brackets I0 and I'I, which support, andare tied together by a split ring bearing I2. This ring-is acute angle with respect to a horizontal line passing therebeneath. It is preferably disposed at an angle'ofA about 30 degrees.

The bearing I2 constitutes a mounting for an agitator to which rapid oscillation is imparted from anelectr-ic motor I3, pulleys I4 and I5, belt lr6, crank I1, connecting link I8 and a crank arm I9y the latter n the agitator. This agitator may be made in many differenty ways. However, for purposes of economy andinorder that the parts may be quickly made uponl a stamping press, I prefer to make this agitator of a top plate 2D, an intermediate plate.

25|, anda. lower. retaining ring 22, these three parts being bound together by the rivets 23. The inneredge of the split ringV bearing engages between. 2'0 .and 22 and thus mounts the agitator for. oscillation insaid bearing.

Referring now to Fig. 2, 24 and25 designate the twohalves of a' slide which is shaped at 26 toengageabout a mop handle and is intended to be permanently and rigidly clamped Vupon the mop handle. by screws 21. Grooves 28 which extend along thesides of the slide are dimensioned-to receivethe. retaining guides 29 and 30, guide 29 being.. carried by plate carriedby the plate A2 I It will be noted that these plates are so shaped as to bring the guides 29 and Bil-into alignment with each other in the same horizontal plane. The result of this is to maintain the axisv ofthe bore 26 and, consequently, to. maintain theaxis. ofthe mop handle vertical, despite the fact that the slide is supported in an inclined agitator.

Atv its rear end, theslide of Figs. 2 and 3 is pro-` ledge. 3 I.-v overlaps that portion of. plate 2l).v which though not necessarily,

disposed at an constituting a rigid extension of y 2l) and the guide 30 being.

3 lies at the rear end of channel 34. When the pin 33 is placed in the opening 32, its lower end engages in an opening 35 formed in the plate 20 and thus the slide is locked against accidental dislodgement from channel 34. When in this position, the center of the mop handle lies at about the point X in Fig. 1. In other words, it lies enough olf-center with respect to the point about which oscillation takes place that such oscillation imparts a. rapid back and forth movement to the mop and handle. At the same time, the inclination of the agitator brings about a rapid up and down movement of the mop. These two movements impart such violent agitation to the mop in all directions as to bring about a very quick and thorough cleaning of the Same. A satisfactory speed for the agitator is 175 to 250 oscillations per minute, and at this speed a very dirty mop can be cleaned in from 10 to 15 seconds. Thus this machine not only saves a great deal of laborious work but it also saves much time.

I contemplate using the same machine to clean dust cloths, and to that end, I secure to the underside of the agitator a rigid arm 36. This arm carries at its end a manually operable spring clamp 31, much like the conventional spring clothespin. This clamp serves to grip a dust cloth, indicated in dotted lines at 38, and to impart a violent shaking to the same. The rigid connection of arm 36 to the agitator results in not only imparting a quick back and forth movement to the cloth, but, due to the twisting movement given to the arm, theV dust cloth is, in effet, ipped violently back and forth.

VAn arcuate screen 39 constitutes a compartment in which the dust cloth is shaken, this screen preventing the dust cloth from getting into any other part of the mechanism. The compartment embraced by screen 39 is open at the bottom and dust released from cloth 38 passes to the lower part of case 5, whence it is ,drawn through an opening 40 in the bottom of said case into a fan casing 4|. A fan 42 in said casing is driven by pulleys 43 and belt 44 from the motor |3 and acts to discharge the released dirt into a dust bag 45 of conventional form. The motor |3'is housed in a compartment 46 which is open at the bottom so that a circulation of air may take place past the motor and through an opening 41, through which the belt I6 passes. The control switch for the motor is preferably of the normally open type so that the machine cannot be left running except when actually in use.y

I prefer to provide knuckle joints I8a at the ends of the connecting link I8 so that rotation of crank I1 may be translated into oscillation of the agitator while permitting the necessary up and down movement of the arm I9. Further, I prefer to mount the casing upon a pair of caster wheels 48, and three point support may be had by including a leg 49. A handle 50 aids in moving the machine from place to place.

It will be clear that many ways will readily suggest themselves to those skilled in the art for accomplishing the same result. through modications of the mechanism. However as far as I am aware, I am the first to provide a machine capable of imparting a rapid back and forth movement to a mop, while at the same time imparting a rapid up and down movement thereto.

The agitator may be embodied in many different forms and many ways may beV resorted to of engagingV the mop with the agitator during the shaking of said mop. One way of accomplishing the aforesaid result is illustrated in Figs. 6 and 7.

4 In these figures brackets |08' and lla, which correspond to the brackets Il] and of Fig. 1, support a bearing l2a corresponding to bearing |2 of Figure 5. Said bearingr 2a in turn supports for oscillation an agitator made up of a top plate 20a, an intermediate plate 2in, and a split rings 22B, these corresponding to the parts 29, 2| and 22 of Figs. 1 and 5,`in the sense that they are tied together as a unit and may be mounted for bodily oscillation in an inclined plane (preferably at an angle of about 30 degrees) in the split ring I2 of Figs. 1 and 5 and in place of the agitator there shown.

The top plate 26a carries a pair of upstanding blocks 5| which support a rod 52. An adjusting nut 53, threaded upon said rod adjusts the tension of a spring 59, which surrounds said rod and thrusts between nut 53 and a sliding block 55 on the said rod. 56 is a lock nut for nut 53. One end of a yoke 51 is pivotally connected at 58 to block 55 and the other end of said yoke is pivotally connected at 59 to a bar 69. A handle 6| provides means for moving the pivot 59 upwardly or downwardly. The left hand end of bar 60 is pivotally connected at 62 to a bifurcated stud 63, the stem 63a of which is mounted to turn in the outer end of a toothed lever 64. This lever is pivoted at 65 to top plate 29a. This swiveling of the stud 63 in lever 64, together with a relatively loose connection between yoke 51 and bar 60 makes it possible by drawing handle 6| upwardly to swing lever 64 upon its pivot and moveV a toothed jaw of said lever away from a correspondingly toothed portion of the agitator said toothed portion being illustrated at 68. It may be here stated that 29a and 2|a may be two separate plates or they may be made in one piece.

The handle of a mop is indicated in section at 69 in Fig. 6 and the customary ferrule of the mop is indicated at 19. The yoke 51 and bar 6D constitute a toggle link and whenthe handle 6| is thrust downwardly to carry pivot 69 to past center position, as indicated in Fig. '1, the toothed jaw 61 is caused to forcibly engage the ferrule of the mop. To insure a Wide bearing and a good grip of said jaw it is provided with a downward extension 1| as shown in Fig. 8. The spring 54 tends to thrust the jaw 61 to its gripping position and the tension of this spring and consequently the force of the grip may be adjusted by nut 53. 'I'he movement of pivot 59 to past center position insures that the jaw 61 will beheld in gripping position even after handle 6| is released.

The arm i9a in Fig. 6 corresponds to the arm |9 of Fig. 1 and the element Hib is a part of the ball and socket joint by which link I8 imparts oscillation to the agitator of Figs. 6 and '1 in the same manner that it imparts oscillation to the agitator of Figs. 1 and 5.

Thus it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the precise construction set forth but that it includes within its purview whatever changes fairly come within either the terms orv the spirit of the appended claims.

Having described my invention, what I claim is:

1. A machine of the character described comprising a slide, means for clamping said slide permanently upon a mop handle, an agitator, and means for oscillating said agitator, said agitator. being provided with members for receiving and holding said slide in such position as to hold the mop handle off -center with respect to the agitator.

2. A machine of the character described comprising a receptacle, an agitator therein, means for mounting the agitator within the receptacle for oscillation about a center and in a plane inclined at an acute angle with respect to the horizontal, a mop handle clamping member, means for engaging said member with the agitator in such manner as to hold the mop handle Vertical throughout its movement and olf-center with respect to the point about which the agitator moves, and means for rapidly oscillating said agitator.

3. A machine of the character described comprising a receptacle, a ring-like bearingV therein lying at an acute angle with respect to the horizontal, a slotted part constituting an agitator supported in said bearing, means for imparting rapid oscillation to said part about a center, a slide engageable in the slot of said part, means carried by the slide for engaging the handle of a mop and means for locking the slide in the slot of the said part with the mop handle vertical and ocenter with respect to the center about which said disk moves and means for imparting rapid oscillations to said part.

4. A machine of the character described comprising a disk like agitator, means for mounting said agitator for oscillation while lying in a plane inclined with respect to the horizontal, and means eccentrically disposed upon the agitator for engaging a vertically disposed mop handle with said agitator to partake of the movement thereof.

5. A machine of the character described comprising an agitator, a bearing supporting said agitator for oscillation in a plane inclined with respect to the horizontal, a rigid arm secured to the agitator and means carried upon the outer portion of said arm for grasping and suspending a dust cloth. v

6. A machine of the character described comprising a casing, a split ring supported from the sides of the casing and lying at an angle of approximately 30 degrees with respect to the horizontal, an agitator slidably engaged about its outer edge with said split ring and supported by said ring for oscillation, a motor, a connection between the motor and agitator for oscillating the latter in the split ring and means engageable with a mop handle and with the agitator for vertically suspending the mop handle off-center in the inclined agitator.

'7. A structure as recited in claim 6 in combination with means carried by the agitator adapted to grip a dust cloth.

8. A structure as recited in claim 6 in combination with a rigid arm projecting laterally from the agitator and a clamp carried upon the outer end of said arm for gripping a dust cloth.

9. A structure as recited in claim 6 in combination with a rigid arm projecting laterally from the agitator and a clamp carried upon the outer end of said arm for gripping a dust cloth, and a screened, bottomless compartment within the casing underlying the outer end of said arm.

10. A mop cleaning machine comprising an agitator, means for oscillating said agitator in a plane disposed at an acute angle with respect to a horizontal line passing therebeneath, and means for engaging a mop handle with the agitator at a point offset with respect t the center 0f oscillation of the agitator.

11. In a mop cleaning machine, an agitator, means for mounting said agitator for oscillation while lying at an angle of aproximately 30 degrees with respect to the horizontal and mop handle engaging means for engaging the mop handle with the agitator at a point offset from the center of oscillation of the agitator while 6 holding said mop handle in vertical position throughout its movement.

12. In a mop cleaning machine, an agitator, means for mounting said agitator for oscillation in a plane inclined with respect to the horizontal, a lever pivoted intermediate its ends and having a toothed jaw at one end, a toothed portion upon the agitator cooperating with the toothed jaw, and manually operable means for moving said lever to bring the toothed jaw of the lever forcibly toward the toothed portion of the agitator to thereby grip a mop handle.

13. In a mop cleaning machine, an agitator, means for mounting said agitator for oscillation in 4a plane inclined with respect to the horizontal, a lever pivoted intermediate its ends and having a toothed jaw at one end, a toothed portion upon the agitator cooperating with the toothed jaw, and manually operable means for moving said lever to bring the toothed jaw of the lever forcibly toward the toothed portion of the agitator t0 thereby grip a mop handle, said manually operable means comprising a toggle-link connection movable to past center position, and spring means acting to maintain said toggle-link connection in such past center position.

14. In a mop cleaning machine, an agitator, means for mounting said agitator for oscillation in a plane inclined with respect to the horizontal, a lever pivoted intermediate its ends and having a toothed jaw at one end, a toothed portion upon the agitator cooperating with the toothed jaw, and manually operable means for moving said lever to bring the toothed jaw of the lever forcibly toward the toothed portion of the agitator to thereby grip a mop handle, said manually operable means comprising a bar mounted upon the agitator, a block slidable upon said bar, a spring upon the bar, a nut for adjusting the tension of the spring, said spring thrusting against said block,v a toggle-link one end of which is pivotally connected to said block, and a lever pivoted intermediate its end to which the other end of the toggle-link is connected.

15, In a mop cleaning machine an agitator in the form of a substantially circular disk, an arcuate mounting engaging said disk about its edge portion and mounting said disk for oscillation, said mounting being inclined to hold the disk throughout its rotation at an acute angle to the horizontal and clamping means carried by the disk at a point eccentric to its center of rotation for clamping a vertically disposed mop handle to cause a mop to be shaken back and forth by the oscillation of the disk and shaken up and down by the rise and fall of the point of engagement of the mop handle with the disk due to the inclined plane in which the disk oscillates.

CLARENCE TURNEPSEED.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 670,291 Mcspirit Mar. 19, 1901 1,799,833 Swanson Apr. '7, 1931 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 567,918 Germany Jan. 11, 1933 106,315 Australia Apr. 23, 1927 

